There is no such thing in Shari`ah as sham marriage (on paper). The sin is further compounded if it is done in order to do something that is prohibited, such as one who uses it to avoid giving people their rights or paying debts to them, or if a woman uses it to get help given to divorcees by a state or institution, or so that she can live in a non-Muslim state where it is not permissible for her to reside, and other invalid, forbidden aims.

• If a woman asks for divorce because the husband is not fulfilling her rights, then he should give her all her rights in full which include the full dowry and reasonable maintenance. If the divorce is irrevocable (a third divorce), then she is not entitled to maintenance or accommodation. • If the woman has custody of her children, then the husband must also give her the payment for custody and breastfeeding and maintenance for the children. • If the woman asks for divorce for no reason, the husband may ask her to return the dowry that he gave her, in return for divorcing her. Consequently, the woman loses the rights of full dowry, reasonable maintenance, payment for custody and breastfeeding, and maintenance for the children.

The reasons why divorce is in the man’s hand are: • The husband is the one in whose hand is the marriage contract, so he is the one in whose hand is the dissolution of this contract. • The husband is in charge of the woman. • The man is more perfect in reason than the woman, and more far-sighted, so you do not see him choosing to divorce unless there is no alternative.

1. When a man says to his wife, “If you do such and such then you are divorced,” or, “If you do not so such and such then you are divorced,” this is a conditional divorce. The majority of jurists are of the view that this divorce counts as such when the condition mentioned is fulfilled. 2. If a husband divorces his wife at a time of anger, that does not mean that the divorce does not count, as many people think, except if the anger reaches such an extent that the man loses his reason and is not aware of what he is saying, in which case it does not count as a divorce according to scholarly consensus.

• If a man divorces his wife and this is the first or second pronouncement of divorce and she has not ended her `Iddah, then he can take his wife back by saying ‘I am taking you back’ or ‘I am keeping you.’ • If the `Iddah has ended following a first or second pronouncement of divorce, then there has to be a new marriage contract. • If the divorce is irrevocable (i.e., third divorce) , then she becomes prohibited for him until another man has married her.

1. The guideline with regard to metonymic (implicit) statements of divorce is that metonymic statements include any phrase that may be understood as referring to divorce or something else, such as: “Go to your family,” or: “It is over between us,” and so on. 2. Divorce does not count as such when metonymic phrases are used, unless two conditions are fulfilled: 1- the person should have the intention of divorce; 2- and he should have used words that are indicative of divorce.